ASUNCION, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Ecuador coach Luis Fernando Suarez resigned on Saturday, immediately after his side were thrashed 5-1 by Paraguay in a World Cup qualifier.

The defeat, the second in a row in which they have conceded
five goals, left them bottom of the South American group with
no points from three games.

'There are times when, in spite of all the effort, one
cannot find what one is looking for and, thinking in the
well-being of the Ecuador team, I have taken the irreversible
decision to resign,' said Suarez, who led Ecuador to the second
round at last year's World Cup.

'My decision has been taken exclusively for the good of the
Ecuador team, which will surely have a better campaign without
me,' added the Colombian.

Suarez, the first coaching victim of the qualifiers, took
over from compatriot Hernan Dario Gomez in August 2004
following the Copa America and led his team to the 2006 World
Cup finals.

They proved one of the surprises of the tournament, beating
Poland and Costa Rica in the group stage before losing 1-0 to
England in the last sixteen.

Ecuador's fortunes took a turn for the worse when they were
knocked out in the group stage of this year's Copa America in
Venezuela and have made a miserable start to the 2010 World Cup
qualifiers amid reports of bickering in the team camp.

'I think that sometimes you don't realise when it's time to
go. I feel nothing but gratitude for a great people who have
given me the chance to improve myself,' said Suarez.

'I believe I've improved greatly as a football coach and I
think of the many things that I've achieved with all the
players.'

A former defensive midfielder, Suarez quit playing at 29 to
take up coaching where he believed he had a brighter future.

He began with Colombia's Atletico Nacional and also coached
Pereira and Millonarios before moving to Ecuador to work as
assistant to Francisco Maturana.

He rejoined Atletico Nacional in 1998 and returned to
Ecuador in 2003 to coach unfashionable Aucas.